Oxygen mask



Patented July 6, 1948 Howard It. Bierman, United States Navy IApplication February 27, 1945, Serial No. 580,051

3 Claims.

(Granted under the act or March 3, m3. as

This invention relates to an oxygen mask and has for an object to,provide an improved oxygen mask particularly intended for use byaviators, a principal feature being that the mask is made in two basicparts including a center universal piece made of plastic material and aseparabl rubber attachment which affords fit to the face.

A further object of this invention is to provide a two-piece oxygen maskwherein a centerpiece includes an expiratory valve easily accessible tothe gloved finger of the wearer in case of freezing or jamming, togetherwith a side oxygen entry port as well as a compartment for holding amicrophone whose cord extends through the oxygen entry port and aseparable face-fitting rubber-attachment for holding the mask in properposition by means of a quick connect-disconnect mechanism.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a two-pieceoxygen mask and microphone holder including a separable face-fittingattachand to provide ,easily detachable units so that the relativelyinexpensive wearable portion may be discarded and replaced, while themore expensive durable portion may be retained and attached to a newwearable portion, thus decreasing the upkeep cost.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a two-pieceoxygen mask made of a facefltting and sealing portion of the usualflexible rubber anda center portion including the oxygen ports andmicrophone holder of a more durable permanent material, and acooperating means on both portions for quickly and easily uniting orseparating the two as may be needed.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, this invention consists inthe construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafterdescribed and illustrated in the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a front eievational view of the mask in the position in whichit would be used; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on line 2-4 of Fig. 1.

amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) There is shown at l0.the oxygenmask of this invention consisting of twoparts, acenterpiece II and a.face-fitting and-sealing piece II. The centerpiece ll includes acompartment l3 for holding a microphone i4 and a conical outlet port l5leading from a cylindrical port it in which is mounted an outlet valveI! by means of its cylindrical flange l8 seated between the conical porti5 and a cylindrical shoulder 20. The center portion II also includes anoxygen inlet port 2| extending through the one side and connecting to anoxygen tube 22. Extending through the center of the oxygen inlet port 2|is a microphone cord 23 connected to the. microphone ll. Extendingrearwardly from the edge of the centerpiece II is a suitably shapedflange 23, ending in an enlarged bead-shaped edge 25.

The face-fitting and sealing piece I: is shaped as shown to fit underthechin 28, over the nose 2'', and about the cheeks 28 of the wearer.These extending portions will be made in various sizes so as to afford acloser fit to various size faces. The center of the face-fitting pieceI! is open to receive the centerpiece II and has a molded recess 30-extending inwardly aroundthe center opening and terminating in an innerbead-shaped recess 3| complementary to the shape of the flange 24 andbead-shaped edge 25 of the center= piece I Due to the flexibility of theform-fitting piece I 2, the recess 33 and innerball-shaped recess 3| maybe stretched to fit overthe centerpiece flange 24 and headed edge 23making a perfect sealing joint therebetween. While the recesses 33 and3i may be formed adjacent the edge of the center opening towards the topof the mask, they will preferably be formed in a ridge 32 towards thebottom of the flange, the ridge 3! extending from a chin-fittingextension 33 merging into the cheek-fitting portions of the face-fittingpiece i2.

It will be observed also, particularly from Fig. 2, that the flange 24of the centerpiece ll extends across a conical downwardly extending port33 provided in the face-fitting piece I! just below the expiratoryconical port it. In order to mount the mask about the head or helmet ofthe wearer, straps 34 are provided, connected to a quickconmeet-disconnect mechanism consisting of a wire frame 35 extendingabout the joint between the center and face-fitting pieces and providedwith a wire. buckle 36 hinging about a U-shaped wire 31, the buckle 36being hingedat 33 to a pivot bar 40 on the wire frame 35, the buckle 38being provided with cammed toes ll which when the buckle 36 is in theposition shown in Fig. 1 cause t e wire U 31 to seat in the recess 42 ofthe wire frame 35 behind the pivot 36; but when the buckle 36 is pulledout to about 180 rotation, the

toes I cam the wire U 31 from outthe recess 42 to disconnect the maskfrom the face.

In the operation, the centerpiece I I is attached to the face-fittingpiece i2 by. inserting the comparatively rigid centerpiece flange 24 andbeadshaped edge 25 into the comparatively flexible recess andbead-shaped recess SI of the facefltting piece l2. When thus :flttedtogether, the entire mask I0 is removable and attachable by manipulatingthe buckle 86' as though it were a one-piece mask. Should condensatefrom the breath tend to freeze on outlet valve H, the valve I! may bemanipulated by the gloved flnger through the conical port I5 to free itfrom any ice. Any condensation formed will tend to collect in thereservoir formed below the expiratory port I S by the flange 24extending over the port 33. Should the amount of condensation become toogreat, it could be drainedthrough port I! by flexing the port 33 untilits recess 30 is so distorted as to provide a' connection from thereservoir.

The centerpiece It may be made of a transparent plastic material more orless rigid and long wearing, while the face-fitting portion I! mustnecessarily be of a softer, flexible plastic or rubber and hence subject-to wear and somewhat rapid deterioration. When it has so deterioratedand no longer provides a proper fit to the face, this face-fitting pieceI! may be discarded and replaced by a new face-fitting piece attached tothe same centerpiece. A further advantage is that the centerpiece may beof a single size, while the face fitting piece I! may be made in varioussizes making a closer fit for the particular individual who is to wearthe mask ll.

permit easy access to said outlet valve, said centerpiece also includingan oxygen inlet port located to the side thereof at least slightly abovesaid outlet valve, said centerpiece also including a microphonesupporting compartment above said valve.

2. Atwo-piece oxygen mask comprising a separable port-carryingcenterpiece and a face-fitting piece and means for joining said piecesinto a single mask, said means including an extending flange on onepiece and a cooperating. complementary shaped recess on the other piece,an expiratory port located adjacent the bottom of Said centerpiece andan outlet valve mounted in said expiratory port, said expiratoryportJformin: a forward protrusion, said centerpiece also including anoxygen inlet port located to the side thereof at least slightly abovesaid outlet valve, said centerpiece also including a microphone supprt-- :0 ing compartment above said valve, said center- Othermodifications and changes in the number and arrangement of the parts maybe made by those skilled in the art without departing from the nature ofthis invention, within the scope of what is hereinafter claimed.

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or forthe Government of 'the United States of America for governmentalpurposes without the payment of any royalties thereon or therefor.

What is claimed is:

1. A two-piece oxygen mask comprising a separableport-carrying-centerpiece and a facefltting piece and means for Joiningsaid pieces into a single mask, said means including an extendingflangeon one piece and a cooperating, complementary shaped recess in theother piece,

said flange having a bead-shaped edge. said recess having acomplementary bead-shaped portion. an expiratory passage locatedadjacent the.

bottom of said centerpiece and an outlet valve set back entirely intosaid expiratory passage.

40 recess.

piece being of a comparatively durable rigid material. said face-fittingpiece being of a comparatively soft, flexible material, and means forattaching said mask to a wearer, including a wire frame extending oversaid mask about the joint between said centerpiece and said facefittingpiece and engaging the lower part of the mask below said protrusion.

3. In a mask of the character described, a relatively soft pliable piecedesigned to fit portions of the face and having a continuous recessaround the edge, a harder piece having laterally offset valve andmicrophone sockets arranged in superposed reiationship, said harderpiece having a rim shaped to flt, detachably into said recess, and saidsoft piece having at its bottom a downwardly extending flexible spoutthat'can be deformed to create an opening to atmosphere through thejoint between said rim and said OWARD a Brennan. animations crran Thefollowing references are of record in the fllejof this patent:

unrran s'm'ras rarau'rs Number Name- Date 791,979 Teter June 29. 19931,197,115 Fell Sept. s, 1916 1,502,450 Wood July 22, 1924 1,837,591Shindel Dec. 22, 1931 2,224,057 Mejean Dec. 3, 1940 2,254,954 O'ConnellSept, 2, 1941 2,317,608 Heldbrink, Apr. 27, 1943 2,359,943 BulbulianJuly 18, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 869,254 Germany 1 Mar.29, 1934 881,819

France Sept. 15, 1938

